i want to stay below $500 and since this is my first digital slr buy, i want to know what your opinion is. yes, you.

and not only is this an investment in my (our) life, but this new camera will also be gracing us with its presence on our next trip...

let the opinions/advice flow.

p.s. i have spoken previous of my love for the pioneer woman (or p-dubs, as i like to call her). it is because of her, her awesome blog, and her fun smartypants quizzes that the purchase of this new camera is possible. thanks, pw!

We have a Nikon D50 and LOVE IT. We got it when we were first married. We have 3 different lenses which are great to shoot different things. It's really easy to use and with my limited knowledge I can still get great pictures. I would suggest to try and take a class on how to use your camera. They don't have them down here in the boonies, but you could probably find one by you. I didn't know you could win stuff from Pioneer Woman. I'm going to have to explore...Good luck!